ive used howdens on last 2 renovations and they are very good quality, so good put one in my own house after being impressed with them, price is good but found you do need to haggle a bit as there seems to be quite large discounts available.

I have just finished fitting a Howdens kitchen. Great quality and a good price too. Everything came in 1 delivery and nothing, unusually, was missing. Only thing is, I now have about 20 sets of cupboard hinges spare, because I upgraded to soft close doors and they are a different fitting and come as a separate item and they don't take out the original hinges in the cabinets. I couldn't praise the suppliers enough.

Just a quick question (excuse the ignorance please), but how does a regular Joe like me purchase the likes of a Howdens kitchen. I understand they are "trade-only" suppliers, but what if I want just the one for my house?

Ha! I'm a regular Joe too and have found Howdens nothing but unhelpful. I know they're trade but they ultimately are losing end-user business. I went into my local branch and saw some samples of kitchen doors but wanted to see couple of built units. As there is an expo store nearby I rang to see if I could go in and have a look.
THEM "No, trade only"
ME "I know but can't I just have a look? I want to see a kitchen in situ then I'll buy it through my installer"
THEM "No, we only sell to trade"
ME "I know, I'm not loooking to buy, just pick one out"
THEM "No"
ME "But how will I know if it's the right kitchen from a door sample, you're not making it easy for your customers"
THEM "You're not our customer, the kitchen installer is"
ME "So you're saying I'd have to buy it blind?"
THEM " Yes"

I can see their point really, i.e. they could sell me one kitchen in 10 - 15 years but to an installer this would be massively increased so they should offer some sort of protection, but I would expect this to normally be done on a cost basis, not a politeness basis!!

Ha! I'm a regular Joe too and have found Howdens nothing but unhelpful. I know they're trade but they ultimately are losing end-user business. I went into my local branch and saw some samples of kitchen doors but wanted to see couple of built units. As there is an expo store nearby I rang to see if I could go in and have a look.
THEM "No, trade only"
ME "I know but can't I just have a look? I want to see a kitchen in situ then I'll buy it through my installer"
THEM "No, we only sell to trade"
ME "I know, I'm not loooking to buy, just pick one out"
THEM "No"
ME "But how will I know if it's the right kitchen from a door sample, you're not making it easy for your customers"
THEM "You're not our customer, the kitchen installer is"
ME "So you're saying I'd have to buy it blind?"
THEM " Yes"

So reluctantly I will be getting my kitchen from Ikea or B&Q

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I am an end user , my local Howdens will let me look at any and everything they stock,they are very helpful and friendly and courteous,but will not give me a price as they are trade, this allows the fitter to earn a little from the deal. Which is a normal trading process